High-profile decision makers and influential leaders are set to converge on Dubai on 13th November to explore the future of strategic sectors as the UAE hosts the inaugural Annual Meeting of the Global Future Councils, the world’s largest future think tank.

UAE participants in the two-day event include influential leaders from the public and private sectors, entrepreneurs, academics, and experts who will work with their international counterparts to proactively propose solutions for the most pressing future challenges. The future experts will be devising global models that promote stability and sustainable development, thus cementing the UAE’s position as an example to be followed when it comes to planning for the future at the government level.

As many as 50 future experts from the UAE will be taking part in the brainstorming sessions and prototype-building workshops scheduled to take place during the meeting. UAE participants will also be taking part in FutureLabs, tasked with devising mechanisms to formulate solutions for future challenges and setting an agenda for top strategic sectors.

The sessions and workshops aim to spread awareness around the concepts of the Fourth Industrial Revolution and to develop a conceptual infrastructure to use as a blueprint for planning for the future around the world. The Annual Meeting of the Global Future Councils – set to be held in Dubai for the next two years – will see participants share insights about the possible effects of Fourth-Industrial-Revolution technologies on government and everyday life, and explore ways to employ them while formulating strategies and initiatives that strive to affect real change.

The UAE future experts will be present in such top-tier councils as those exploring the future of energy, education, advanced materials, biotechnology, Blockchain, computing, cybersecurity, the economy and the digital community, monetary systems, food security, innovation and entrepreneurship, international trade and investment, cyber security, the Internet, transportation, global governance, global security, production, artificial intelligence and robotics, human enhancement, space exploration, the environment, and the future of cities and urbanisation.

With 700 top-tier thought leaders and specialists set to participate, the sessions will concentrate on the radical shifts brought about by the elements of the Fourth Industrial Revolution – Artificial Intelligence and Robotics, the Internet of Things, IoT, and Blockchain technology – as they attempt to make accurate projections of the future of these innovative sectors, all while proposing solutions for potential future challenges.

Key findings from the inaugural Annual Meeting of the Global Future Councils will be presented at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, set to take place in January 2017, drawing in 2,000 high-profile leaders and executives from around the world.